This paper looks at the current trends in dance from the year 2000. It does this by zooming in on four different dance styles which are popular across the globe. These styles incorporate a variety of fairly new dances as well as older ones that seem new, but have a long, rich and colorful history.
For me, the most exciting part of dance today, is that it can be done to an incredibly broad range of music from rap to classical. I love the fact that we can go to the internet and see the most awesome performers on YouTube, and can even access video clips giving basic instructions on a few moves for Salsa or Street dance etc.
Salsa
Steaming and sexy, salsa originated from the jewel in the Caribbean, Cuba, a country with a long history of fabulous music and dancing that has given so much pleasure to the world. Salsa is full of sensuous hip movements and other raunchy moves, and includes a lot of underarm turns. It is usually danced with a partner, although some enthusiastic individuals can do a recognized solo routine. It can be danced to Latin-American music as well as any contemporary sound with the right beat. Salsa is enjoyed throughout Latin America as well as in Europe, North America, Australia and Asia, and salsa venues and classes are in great demand (Wonderslist).
Hip-Hop
Hip-hop is a famous street dance style that was born from the hip hop culture of the 1970s. Since that time it is often seen being danced in films and on television, and has remained very popular. A lot of people know that basic moves and want to get on down when hip-hop music comes on. There are many different styles which include: popping, locking and breaking, and many of the actions are made with the body close to the ground, so you have to be quite agile. There are however, some easy moves the we can learn from YouTube, for example, from Talk Dirty (Wonderslist, Talk Dirty)!
Ballet
Ballet (which means to dance), seems to have been consistently popular throughout the centuries, and the 21st Century is no different. Ballet was born in Italy way back in the 15th Century when it spread to Russia and France where it continued to develop, transforming it to a concert dance instead of a performance dance. It is taught in most countries across the globe and consists of individual movements holding on to a bar to improve technique and flexibility, as well as choreographed solo, partner and group pieces. It demands a great deal of commitment, and incorporates acrobatic movements, work on pointe, and the flowing balletic movements that are so admired. Ballet has various forms including expressionist, neoclassical and romantic. Many children attend ballet lessons, and adolescents who are successful join ballet troupes in the hope of touring with ballet productions. We do not have to spend a fortune going to a theater to watch first-class ballet productions, as for example, the “Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy” with Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky and Nina Kaptsova, is available on You Tube (Wonderslist, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky).
Line Dancing
Line Dancing is in great demand because people can go and join in without the need for a partner, and both male and female participants join in by forming lines with everyone facing forward. It can be done to all kinds of music, and upbeat Country and Western songs are a favorite choice among the dancers that attend dance schools and clubs. It is quite easy to learn, and involves a set of steps that are systematically repeated, and everyone dances in unison taking the steps and turns at the same time. People stand fairly close together but do not have any body or arm contact. A sequence that is danced is often referred to as a “wall”, and normally goes on for a number of beats which can be: 64, 48 or 32, and is then repeated (Wonderslist, Line Dance).
- Line Dance Sydney (2003). Retrieved from: http://www.roots-boots.net/ldance/history.html (Accessed May 4 2015).
- Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky / Nina Kaptsova – Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy. Retrieved from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wz_f9B4pPtg (Accessed May 4 2015).
Talk Dirty. Retrieved from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hVoNwiFIPRU (Accessed May 4 2015). - Wonderslist (n.d.). What are the current trends in different dance styles? Retrieved from: http://www.wonderslist.com/10-most-famous-dance-styles-in-the-world/ (Accessed May 4 2015).
